Ministry of Health Clarifies Receipt and Recording of Medicines Valued at $7.7 Billion

The Ministry of Health wishes to clarify recent media reports concerning medicines valued at approximately GYD $7.7 billion, which were the subject of observations by the Auditor General. The Ministry categorically confirms that the medicines in question were duly supplied by the respective contractors, physically delivered, received and accepted by the Ministry. The apparent discrepancy identified during the Auditor General’s examination did not arise from a failure to supply or receive the medicines, but from administrative delays in recording deliveries within the Ministry’s inventory management system.

At the material time, the Ministry was implementing CORTEX, a new supply chain management platform, and the transition resulted in a temporary backlog in entering information relating to supplies that had already been received and accepted. The Ministry considers it important that this distinction be clearly understood, as a delay in the electronic recording of inventory should not be misconstrued as evidence that the medicines were not delivered or received. The operational difficulty responsible for the backlog has since been resolved, and the majority of the outstanding entries have been uploaded to CORTEX, with the remaining work progressing towards completion. The Auditor General has also been apprised of these developments.

The Health Ministry further wishes to address concerns regarding storage capacity at the Materials Management Unit (MMU). While recognising the importance of adequate storage infrastructure in the effective management of the national pharmaceutical supply chain, the Ministry emphasises that the medicines in question were received and accommodated through available storage arrangements, including an off-site facility, and are being distributed to hospitals, health centres and other health facilities across Guyana. Indeed, the Ministry has been actively strengthening and decentralising its storage and distribution infrastructure to improve accessibility, efficiency and responsiveness to the needs of the population.